Nursing Research in Parkinson's Disease From 2006 to 2015: A Systematic Review

Most people with Parkinson's disease (PD) reside in their homes with their family members. Nurses are in a good position to partner with people with PD and their family members for better self-management of the disease and improved quality of life. The purpose of this systematic review was to assess the state of the science of nursing research related to PD during the 10-year period, 2006 to 2015. A total of 27 studies were included in this review. Family caregiving was the most studied topic, followed by symptom management/medication adherence, quality of life, end-of-life/palliative care, and functional status/improving function. Recommendations for future studies in PD include (a) developing and testing interventions based on theoretical models in the areas of self-management, symptom management, and function improvement in people with PD and for caregivers caring for people with advanced stage PD, and (b) building programs of research with interprofessional teams.